Buying Tires: Sams Club vs Discount Tire vs Others?

19,634 Views | 18 Replies | Last: 11 yr ago by Elu11
AgAttack
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AG
Buying 4 tires for a 2003 4Runner 4x4. Mostly for highway commuting to and from work but like to be able to get off the beatin' path occassionally for fishing and camping trips. Will be moving to a colder climate, so rain/snow/ice is a factor.

Would appreciate any thoughts tire brands, models, and stores (ie, free rotation, etc). OEM tire size is 265/65-17.

Thanks!
BoyNamedSue
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Never had a problem with Discount tire. I always try and shop around and find the best deal, but when you factor in service, availability, and price....I always find myself going back.

For snow/ice, there are a number of good brands. My truck came stock with 265/70/17's and I later upgraded to 285's....I started with Goodyear's, then moved to 2 sets BFG's (arguably your best bet along with Michelin, but expensive). Now I'm running Falken Rocky Moutains. There are just so many good brands that you have a ton of good choices.
robertcope
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I just put Michelin LTX A/T2s on my Tacoma. So far, so good, but they've literally been on a week. They get great reviews, though, and I've never met a Michelin I didn't like.

I bought them from onlinetires.com for $158 a piece, well under anything I could find elsewhere.

I had them installed at TireMax here in College Station. TireMax has set up an auxiliary shop out at Texas World Speedway and is supporting racers out there; since I race out there, they're supporting me, so I wanted to support them! I didn't tell them this when I went in, of course, but the experience was great and very reasonably priced.

I asked about NT01s and whether they'd price match onlinetires.com's prices, and they seemed happy to do that.

robert
aggiepaintrain
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AG
I am selling Dunlop (4) AT20 Grand Trek 265/65/17 for $500 like new take offs with 2000 miles.
Also have 2012 TRD allow Tacoma wheels for sale.
$600 for the rims.

I am in College Station
TXAGFAN
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AG
Very good discount tire promo right now.
AgAttack
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AG
Thanks everyone for your help!

I noticed discount tire is offering a $100 gift card for Memorial Day weekend (ends today). Is that worth jumping on or will they run specials pretty often (like Dell or Jos A Bank)?

If I buy from an online shop, I noticed you can get the same tires for cheaper, but then what do most typical shops charge to mount, balance, and install them? Do you end up saving enough money in the end to be worth the hassle?

aggiepaintrain - Those are the exact tires I have now, and yes I would be very interested! I live in Houston. Please contact me soon before I jump on the Discount Tire deal this evening. How much more would it cost to install?

[This message has been edited by agattack (edited 5/26/2012 1:23p).]
TXAGFAN
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AG
This is not a frequent promotion in store at discount tire. I am not a big fan of buying tires online due to the hassle.
MLK_87
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If you travel alot, Discount Tires are all over the place. Free fixes if you run over nails, etc. I've been buying my tires from them for years and have never had a bad experience with Discount Tire.
BRIANVD04
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I've used Discount tire for all of my tire purchases. Since I am working in North Dakota, there isn't a Discount tire up here. I called Discount Tire Direct, and I was informed that their warranty certificates are good all over the country. No questions asked, don't have to send the tire back to them. Just call and tell them the tire is damaged and they will ship a new one to you.

Just an option if you aren't' going to be near a Discount Tire all the time.
robertcope
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Regarding online tire purchases: yes, the savings can be worth it. You really just have to sit down and figure out the total price. Sometimes it can be a huge savings, sometimes not. I buy a lot of tires for the race car, so saving $50-$100 a set makes a difference to me.

robert
1agswitchin4lanes
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AG
Please search.

This has been covered many times before.

I tend not to buy sams or walmart because they're tires made FOR them. Usually not stuff you can buy elsewhere.

Discount does it too, i.e. their Arizonian, Yoko YK520/580 are decent. People really like the Falken Rocky mountain, but not me personally.

Online you may be able to do better, but you can also try to call my buddys place in Houston, see if he'll work you a deal.
roycoy
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Discount Tire will honor tirerack.com prices. Bring the print-out and they will get that tire or a comparable if you don't want to wait until it comes in.
BRIANVD04
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AG
Also try www.tirecrawler.com, they'll price match them too.
MouthBQ98
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AG
Also, most retail tires are on about a 25-30% markup, so there is room to negotiate. Most times, if I go in acting like I'm on the edge of deciding, I can make a counter offer and they'll do a discount. Say, they're pitching $750 total, I'll say I can maybe do $700, and sometimes they'll do it.
91AggieLawyer
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AG
Everyone will price match the others. They may limit it to certain specific models which they don't carry but the major stuff should be something you can get everywhere. The road hazard on Discount ends after 3 years but I think Pep Boys does their's for the life of the tire.
AgAttack
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AG
Thanks for all the help and insights!
CPES_AG
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http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Michelin&tireModel=LTX+A%2FT+2

Ive Had LTX A/T 2's on my f150 for 3 years and havent noticed much tread wear(90% highway and city) and have never had a tire with such great traction in rain, mud, snow, ice and even wet asphalt. Can't go wrong here
HHAG
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Bought my Conti Extreme Contacts through Tire Rack.com. They shipped them to a local shop, I paid $100 to get them installed. Saved me $400 vs. any other place that even stocked them. Great tires.
KidDoc
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AG
I love discount tire. I get all 3 vehicles rotated and balanced every 5k miles. They actually know me by name and ask how the Mustang is doing when I bring in one of the womenz cars.
No material on this site is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See full Medical Disclaimer.
Elu11
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AG
+1 for discount tire.
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